Hockey game apparatus

ABSTRACT

An easily transportable hockey game apparatus in which the components releasably couple and thereby hold together as a single unit; the components include a first goal, a second goal, a plurality of sticks and at least one puck, are provided herein.

TECHNICAL FIELD

A hockey game apparatus configured to be carried in a pocket-sized single unit is provided.

BACKGROUND

The present invention is directed to tabletop games and is particularly directed to tabletop hockey games.

Hockey is a popular sport and there exist a wide variety of tabletop games modeling this sport. Some examples are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,433,443 which is a hockey game with rods controlling hockey figures connected on a singular board surface; U.S. Pat. No. 5,242,164 which discloses a board resembling a hockey ice sheet with pucks or balls shot into nets by implements connected to a person's hand; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,474,375 discloses a tabletop hockey game that uses one control handle to move multiple playing pieces over a playing surface.

Although the above-identified patents show a variety of hockey game play simulations, these games are cumbersome to individuals and have a large number of unconnected parts which, when carried by a user, may be easily separated from one another and lost.

SUMMARY

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a new type of tabletop hockey game that is pocket-sized for easy transport by a user and which can be played on any horizontal surface. It is also an object of this invention to protect the various parts of the game from separation from one another by coupling all parts together in a single unit that may easily be transported by a user.

An embodiment of the invention provides a game apparatus, including: a first goal and a second goal each having an internal face and an external face and each having a stick recess in the internal face and a puck recess in the internal face; a plurality of sticks and at least one puck; the stick recess may be configured to hold a plurality of sticks; the puck recess may be configured to hold at least one puck, and the internal face of the first goal and the internal face of the second goal are releasably coupled together by at least one fastening implement.

A related embodiment includes the first goal and the second goal each have a horizontal side and two vertical sides which are connected by curved corners. The corners do not have to be curved; they may be perpendicular angles or any other shape which serves the function of a goal. The horizontal sides and vertical sides may be connected or not connected to one another. The stick recess is an area of depression in each goal, and may be located in the internal face of the two vertical sides and may be uniform in depth. The stick recess may also be located in the internal face of the horizontal side or curved corners and may not be uniform in depth. The puck recess is a slot and may be located in the internal face of the horizontal side and may be uniform in depth. The puck recess may also be located in the internal face of the vertical sides or curved corners and may not be uniform in depth.

A related embodiment includes the sticks each having a substantially straight holding portion and at least one curved puck handling portion. The curved puck handling portion may comprise one or both ends of each stick and the substantially straight holding portion may comprise the middle or end portion of each stick.

In a related embodiment, the first goal and the second goal may be releasably coupled together by at least one implement, including: a magnet, a snap feature, a rubber band, a string, a box enclosing the parts, a bag, a sack or a pin. It is envisioned herein that any method of holding the first and second goals together so as to prevent the goals, sticks and at least one puck from separating from one another as a single unit is possible. The fastening implement is not required to be located on either the external nor internal faces of the goals and may be a peripheral, separate item which serves the same purpose of enclosing the contents together as a single unit. The first goal and the second goal being releasably coupled together holds the first goal, the second goal, the at least one puck and the plurality of sticks together as a single unit. The first and second goals, the sticks and the puck may be made from at least one of: a plastic, a wood or a metal. The puck may be a cylinder or a sphere.

Another embodiment of the invention provides a game apparatus, including: a first goal and a second goal each having an internal face and an external face and each having a stick recess in the internal face and a puck recess in the internal face; a plurality of sticks and at least one puck; a hinged backstop coupled to the external face of each of the first goal and the second goal; the stick recess may be configured to hold a plurality of sticks; the puck recess may be configured to hold at least one puck and the internal face of the first goal and the internal face of the second goal may be releasably coupled together by at least one implement.

In a related embodiment, the hinged backstop may be rotatably coupled to the external face of each of the first goal and the second goal by at least one of: a hinge, a yoke, a nut/bolt combination, a nut/screw combination, a screw or by any other rotating hinge mechanism known in the art and the backstop may be at least one of: a net connected to a solid member or a plastic. The solid member may be made of at least one of: a plastic, a wood or a metal. The hinged backstop may be coupled to the external face of each of the first goal and the second goal by at least one of: a magnet or a snap feature. The external face of each of the first goal and the second goal may be recessed and configured to fit the hinged backstop.

In a related embodiment, the first goal and the second goal may each have a horizontal side and two vertical sides which are connected by curved corners. The stick recess is an area of depression and may be located in the internal face of the two vertical sides and may be uniform in depth. The stick recess may also be located in the internal face of the horizontal side or curved corners and may not be uniform in depth. The puck recess is a slot and may be located in the internal face of the horizontal side and may be uniform in depth. The puck recess may also be located in the internal face of the vertical sides or curved corners and may not be uniform in depth.

A further embodiment includes the sticks each having a substantially straight holding portion and at least one curved puck handling portion, where the curved puck handling portion may comprise one or both ends of each stick and the substantially straight holding portion may comprise the middle or end portion of each stick.

In a related embodiment, the first goal and the second goal may be releasably coupled together by at least one of: a magnet, a snap feature or a pin. The first goal and the second goal being releasably coupled together holds the first goal, the second goal, the at least one puck and the plurality of sticks together as a single unit. The first and second goals, the sticks and the puck may be made of at least one of: a plastic, a wood or a metal and the at least one puck may be a cylinder or a sphere.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a representation of an embodiment of the game apparatus. The images on the left side shows the first and second goals coupled together holding the sticks in the stick recess and the at least one puck in the puck recess. The images on the right side are representations of an embodiment of the game apparatus when the first and second goals are shown separately and not coupled together, with the sticks shown held in the stick recess and the puck shown held in the puck recess. Coupling the internal face of the first goal to the internal face of the second goal with the sticks and the at least one puck held in their respective recesses allows a user to carry all parts of the game apparatus together as a single unit, making the apparatus easily transportable by a user.

FIG. 2 is a pictorial representation of a goal showing various features. The puck recess is shown in the horizontal side of the goal and the stick recess is shown in the two vertical sides of the goal. The far-right image shows the depth of the stick recess. The bottom image shows the depth of the puck recess. The middle and top images show releasable couplings which may be magnets, snap features, pins, or any other similar implement known in the art which can releasably couple the internal faces of the first and second goals together.

FIG. 3 is a pictorial representation of a stick showing various features. A user may hold the implement by the substantially straight portion of the stick. Both ends of the stick are shown as curved puck handling portions which enable a user to control the puck of FIG. 4. Either one or both ends of the stick may be curved puck handling portions, with both options being envisioned herein. Sticks of the present invention are configured to be held in the stick recess.

FIG. 4 is a pictorial representation of a puck showing various features. The puck is configured to be held in the puck recess and also configured to be controlled by a user using the curved puck handling portion of a stick as shown herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIGS. 1-4 show a game apparatus in accordance with certain embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 1 shows the game apparatus of the present invention from two different perspectives. The two images on the left show the first goal 1 coupled to the second goal 3, each goal having an internal face 11/12 and an external face 9 with the sticks 5/7 and at least one puck 17 being held together as a single unit by releasable coupling implements 19. This embodiment of the present invention allows a user to carry all parts of the game apparatus together as a single unit. The two images on the right show the sticks 5/7 held in the stick recess 13 and the at least one puck 17 held in the puck recess 15 without the internal face of the second goal 12 being coupled to the internal face of the first goal 11. In some embodiments, the first goal 1 and the second goal 3 are equivalent to one another in the configuration of the puck recess 15 and the stick recess 13. In some embodiments, the first goal 1 and the second goal 3 are not equivalent to one another, because the releasable coupling implements 19 on either goal may be, for example, magnets with opposite charges. The implements 19 may also be a snap feature or pin which, for example, may have a male end located on one goal which releasably couples to a female end located on the other goal and therefore the two goals may or may not be equivalent.

Also envisioned herein is that the puck 17 may also be a least one sphere rather than a cylinder, which may be used to play other tabletop games, such as tabletop soccer or field hockey using the game apparatus described herein.

In some embodiments, each goal has a horizontal side 23 and two vertical sides 21 which are connected by curved corners 25. The puck recess 15 may be located on the horizontal side 23 and the stick recess 13 may be located on the two vertical sides 21. In yet another embodiment, the puck recess 15 may be located on the vertical sides 21 and the stick recess 13 may be located on the horizontal side. The stick recess 13 and the puck recess 13 may be uniform or non-uniform in depth. It is envisioned herein that the puck recess 15 and stick recess 13 may be positioned at any location on the internal face 11/12 of either goal. In any embodiment, the constituent parts of the game apparatus of the present invention may be releasably coupled together so the user may transport the game apparatus as a single unit.

The game apparatus may be made out of any of a wide variety of materials such as a plastic, a wood or a metal. In some embodiments, the plastic may be, for example: acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene, high-density polyethylene, low-density polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC), polypropylene, polystyrene, polyamides, polycarbonate, polycarbonate/acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (PC/ABS), a bioplastic for example polylactic acid, or polyurethanes. In an embodiment of the invention made from plastic, the game apparatus may be made by, for example, a three-dimensional printing mechanism, an extrusion or injection molding mechanism, a heated injection molding mechanism, a rotational mold process, a blow molding process, or any other plastic molding process known in the art.

In another embodiment, the game apparatus may be made from a wood which may be any wood known in the art, including: pine, ash, oak, cherry, mahogany, maple, or the like. In an embodiment of the invention made from wood, the game apparatus may be made by any method known in the art of wood working.

In yet another embodiment, the game apparatus may be made from a metal or a metal alloy which may be any metal known in the art, including: aluminum, iron, steel, stainless steel, tin, or the like. In an embodiment of the invention made from metal, the game apparatus may be made by any method known in the art of metal working, including: die-casting, a press machine, a heated mold, or any metal manufacturing practice known in the art.

It is here envisioned that any combination of a plastic, a wood, and/or a metal are interchangeable with one another in making the game apparatus as a whole and the constituent parts of the present invention. As an illustrative example, the sticks may be made of wood, the first and second goals may be made of metal, and the puck may be made of a plastic.

The game apparatus of the present invention may be played on any horizontal surface and there exist a variety of game play possibilities for users. Initially, the first goal 1 is separated from the second goal 3 by a user. In an embodiment, the game is played with two people on different sides of a horizontal surface with the first goal 1 in front of a first user and the second goal 3 in front of a second user. Each user may hold a stick 5/7 in their hand and maneuver the stick 5/7 to control at least one of the pucks 17. The user or users may shoot the at least one puck 17 using the stick 5/7 into the goal 1/3 of the other user. The users may or may not use their sticks 5/7 as blocking mechanisms, similar to a goalie, to try to block the shooting attempts of the other user. Many variations of a hockey, soccer, or field hockey style game using the game apparatus of the present invention are envisioned herein.

The game apparatus of the present invention is made to be pocket-sized so that it may be easily transported and carried by a user as a single unit, thereby ensuring all constituent parts are not separated from one another in transport and lost. However, as is known, pockets are various sizes. It is also envisioned herein that the game apparatus may fit in a medium or large sized bag, all of which are able to be carried by a user. Thus, the game apparatus may come in a variety of sizes, for example, the game apparatus may be two inches long, five inches long, eight inches long, twelve inches long, twenty-four inches long or thirty-six inches long. Regardless of the length of the game apparatus, each of the component parts, including the first goal 1, the second goal 3, the sticks 5/7, the at least one puck 17 and the releasable coupling implements 19 may be proportional or non-proportional to one another in size, i.e., the puck and sticks can be small and goals can be disproportionately larger.

In another embodiment of the game apparatus of the present invention, it is envisioned herein that a hinged backstop may be coupled to the external face 9 of each of the first goal 1 and the second goal 3. The hinged backstop may be rotatably coupled to the vertical sides 21 by a rotating hinge mechanism, which may be, for example, a hinge, a yoke, a nut/bolt combination, a nut/screw combination, a screw or any similar rotating mechanism known in the art. The hinged backstop may be a net connected to a solid member, the solid member being rotatably coupled to the external face 9 of each of the first goal 1 and the second goal 3 and the hinged backstop may also be a plastic implement. The external face 9 of each of the first goal 1 and the second goal 3 may be recessed and configured to fit the hinged backstop. The hinged backstop may be coupled to the external face 9 of the first goal 1 and the second goal 3 by a magnet, a snap feature, or any other mechanism known in the art to hold a solid member in place. The solid member may be made of a plastic, a wood, or a metal equivalently to the materials available for making the first goal 1, second goal 3, sticks 5/7 and/or at least one puck 17 as discussed above.

The embodiment of the present invention having a hinged backstop resembles not merely a hockey net but alternatively a soccer net, as the rotatable coupling allows a user to pull the backstop from the external face 9 of the first goal 1 and the second goal 3, yet the backstop remains coupled to the goals by at least one hinge point. This embodiment may allow for realistic play of hockey, soccer, field hockey, or the like in that the sticks 5/7 or a user's hands may be used to shoot the puck 17, or in an alternative embodiment a spherical ball into a goal with a net or plastic backstop.

In this embodiment, the first goal 1 and the second goal 3 have a horizontal side 23 and two vertical sides 21 which are connected by curved corners 25. The stick recess 13 may be located in the internal face 11 of the vertical sides 21 and may also be located in the internal face 11 of the horizontal side 23. The puck recess 15 may be located in the internal face 11 of the horizontal side 23 and may also be located in the internal face 11 of the vertical sides. Each of the stick recess 13 and the puck recess 15 may be uniform or non-uniform in depth. The first goal 1 and the second goal 3 may be releasably coupled together by at least one implement 19, including a magnet, a snap feature and a pin, and the goals being releasably coupled together holds the first goal 1, the second goal 3, the at least one puck 17, and the plurality of sticks 5/7 together as a single unit. In this embodiment the first goal 1, the second goal 3, the at least one puck 17 and the plurality of sticks 5/7 may be made of a variety of materials, including a plastic, a wood or a metal as discussed above.

FIG. 2 shows a detailed representation of an embodiment of the first goal 1 and/or the second goal 3. The at least one implement 19 may be located at any location on the internal surface 11 of both the first goal 1 and the second goal 3. The at least one implement 19 which releasably couples the internal face of the first goal 11 to the internal face of the second goal 12 are configured to correspond in location to their counterpart implement 19 located in the internal face 11/12 of the opposite goal. The puck recess 15 is here shown in the internal face 11 of the horizontal side 23 and the stick recess 13 is here shown in the internal face 11 of the vertical sides 21. However, the locations of the puck recess 15 and the stick recess 13 are interchangeable with one another and both may also be located in the internal face 11/12 of the curved corners 25 along with at any other location on an internal face 11/12 of a goal. The far right image of FIG. 2 shows a side-view of the stick recess 13 and the bottom image of FIG. 2 shows a side-view of the puck recess 15.

FIG. 3 shows a detailed representation of an embodiment of a stick 5/7 of the game apparatus of the present invention. The sticks 5/7 of the present invention may each have a substantially straight holding portion 27 and at least one curved puck handling portion 29. The curved puck handling portion 29 may comprise either one or both ends of each stick 5/7. The substantially straight holding portion 27 may comprise the middle or end portion of each stick 5/7.

FIG. 4 shows a representation of an embodiment of a puck 17 of the present invention. The puck 17 in this representation is shown as a cylinder, however it is also envisioned herein that the puck may be a sphere resembling a soccer ball or field hockey ball.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to a game apparatus resembling hockey, soccer or field hockey as a preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles and applications of the present invention. It is therefore to be understood that numerous modifications may be made, and other arrangements may be devised without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the claims.

These and other variations and combinations of the features described above can be utilized without departing from the present invention as defined by the claims. As such, the foregoing description of embodiments should be taken by way of illustration rather than by way of limitation of the claimed invention. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A game apparatus, comprising: a first goal and a second goal each having an internal face and an external face and each having a stick recess in the internal face and a puck recess in the internal face; a plurality of sticks and at least one puck; the stick recess is configured to hold the sticks; the puck recess is configured to hold the at least one puck; and, the internal face of the first goal and the internal face of the second goal are releasably coupled together by at least one fastening implement.
 2. The game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first goal and the second goal each have a horizontal side and two vertical sides which are connected by curved corners.
 3. The game apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the stick recess is an area of depression located in the internal face of the two vertical sides.
 4. The game apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the puck recess is a slot located in the internal face of the horizontal side.
 5. The game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sticks each have a substantially straight holding portion and at least one curved puck handling portion.
 6. The game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one fastening implement is selected from the group consisting of: a magnet, a snap feature, a rubber band, a string, a box enclosing the parts, a bag, a sack and a pin.
 7. The game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first goal and the second goal being releasably coupled together holds the first goal, the second goal, the at least one puck and the plurality of sticks together as a single unit.
 8. The game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first goal, the second goal, the sticks, and the at least one puck are made of at least one selected from the group consisting of: a plastic, a wood, and a metal.
 9. A game apparatus, comprising: a first goal and a second goal each having an internal face and an external face and each having a stick recess in the internal face and a puck recess in the internal face; a plurality of sticks and at least one puck; a hinged backstop coupled to the external face of each of the first goal and the second goal; the stick recess is configured to hold the sticks; the puck recess is configured to hold the at least one puck; and, the internal face of the first goal and the internal face of the second goal are releasably coupled together by at least one fastening implement.
 10. The game apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the hinged backstop is rotatably coupled to the external face of each of the first goal and the second goal by at least one of: a hinge, a yoke, a nut/bolt combination, a nut/screw combination, and a screw, and the hinged backstop is at least one selected from the group consisting of: a net connected to a solid member and a plastic.
 11. The game apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the hinged backstop is coupled to the external face of each of the first goal and the second goal by at least one selected from the group consisting of: a magnet, velcro, and a snap feature.
 12. The game apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the external face of each of the first goal and the second goal are recessed and configured to hold the hinged backstop.
 13. The game apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the solid member is made of at least one selected from the group consisting of: a plastic, a wood, and a metal.
 14. The game apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the first goal and the second goal each have a horizontal side and two vertical sides which are connected by curved corners.
 15. The game apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the stick recess is an area of depression located in the internal face of the two vertical sides.
 16. The game apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the puck recess is a slot located in the internal face of the horizontal side.
 17. The game apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the sticks each have a substantially straight holding portion and at least one curved puck handling portion.
 18. The game apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the at least one fastening implement is selected from the group consisting of: a magnet, a snap feature, a rubber band, a string, a box enclosing the parts, a bag, a sack and a pin.
 19. The game apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the first goal and the second goal being releasably coupled together holds the first goal, the second goal, the at least one puck and the plurality of sticks together as a single unit.
 20. The game apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the first goal, the second goal, the sticks, and the at least one puck are made of at least one selected from the group consisting of: a plastic, a wood, and a metal. 